Safety in the Laboratory

Laboratory OSHA Safety Culture

                                                           

The safety culture varies greatly from laboratory to laboratory. Most lab employees these days know that eating food or drinking in the lab is against most, if not all, lab regulatory agency rules and guidelines. However, it is surprising that many do not seem to understand that gum chewing or using hard candy or throat lozenges is also not permitted in a laboratory setting.

                                                           

OSHA’s Bloodborne Pathogen Standard specifically states “Eating, drinking, smoking, applying cosmetics or lip balm, and handling contact lenses are prohibited in work areas where there is a reasonable likelihood of occupational exposure.” Obviously, the goal of this regulation is to prevent employees from obtaining infection via ingestion. A secondary goal is to limit hand to mouth contact while working in the laboratory. So far there has been no mention of gum or cough drops in the standards.

                                                           

In the National Research Council’s Prudent Practices in the Laboratory (1995), it states “Eating, drinking, smoking, gum chewing, applying cosmetics, and taking medicine in laboratories where hazardous chemicals are used should be strictly prohibited.” In the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute’s document Clinical Laboratory Safety (GP-17 A3, 2012), it states “Food, drink and substances that provide potential hand-to-mouth contact (including chewing gum and lip balm) are prohibited in technical work areas.”

                                                           

Most inspectors of the laboratory will cite the lab for gum chewing or the like. An employee may respond that the gum was placed into their mouth outside the lab, but proving that would be difficult at best. It is an inappropriate and unsafe practice, and it should not be allowed.

                                                           

Again, limit hand-to-mouth or hand-to-face contact in the laboratory. What about telephone use? There are speaker options for phones that can help, but some labs are too noisy for that type of use. Disinfect phones often if that is the case.

As with any other safety regulation, if you explain it to staff, and if you make it easy to comply, your safety culture will improve. Educate your staff about these guidelines and standards and why they exist. Unfortunately, many workers fell victim to harmful infectious diseases before these regulations were developed. Don’t let your staff become another part of those unfortunate lab safety statistics.